Students' Views on Mathematics in Single-Sex and Coed Classrooms in Ghana

Abstract

In this study, we investigated students’ views on themselves as learners of mathematics as a function of school‐by‐sex (N = 2034, MAge = 18.49, SDAge = 1.25; 12th‐grade; 58.2% girls). Using latent variable Structural Equation Modeling (SEM), the measurement and structural equivalence as well as the equality of latent means of scores across single‐sex and coed schools were tested. Findings regarding the latent mean differences revealed that girls in single‐sex schools had significantly higher mathematics self‐confidence than did students’ in coed schools. Girls in coed schools had significantly lower mathematics self‐concepts than did boys in single‐sex, girls in single‐sex and boys in coed schools. Girls in single‐sex schools had significantly higher family encouragement than students’ in all other school types. Moreover, a more complex dynamics were found on the teacher quality variate. This paper argues for a deeper understanding of sex‐school interaction and of possible causes of students’ views on mathematics.